


Carnation

by VladimirVladivostok



Series: Micronations ESC AU [2]
Category: Eurovision Song Contest RPF, Music RPF, Real Person Fiction
Genre: Eurovision, Eurovision Song Contest 2012, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-05
Updated: 2020-03-05
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:41:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,327
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23534737
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VladimirVladivostok/pseuds/VladimirVladivostok
Summary: Tigran Avakian. That's you. Armenia's entrant for the Eurovision Song Contest 2012. In Baku. In Azerbaijan. It sounded strange, even just thinking that. Armenia and Azerbaijan certainly didn't like each other, that wasn't a secret, and yet here you were.
Series: Micronations ESC AU [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1693630
Kudos: 5





	1. Chapter 1

Tigran Avakian. That's you. Armenia's entrant for the Eurovision Song Contest 2012. In Baku. In Azerbaijan. It sounded strange, even just thinking that. Armenia and Azerbaijan certainly didn't like each other, that wasn't a secret, and yet here you were. Armenians weren't even allowed to come here, usually. But the EBU had secured a special exception for you, to come and compete in the contest.  
It almost hadn't happened. Armenia almost hadn't sent an entry this year. There had been a few who had volunteered to go, but when it all became to real for them, when the prospect of travelling to Baku loomed closer, they pulled out, leaving Armenia without any entrant and their only choice being to withdraw from the contest. That's where you came in. You agreed to go. You said you'd do it. You only hoped that you'd made the right decision.  
You walked down the road and looked around you. There weren't many other people around. Wasn't it strange? Walking down these streets. The forbidden streets. You weren't supposed to be here. You were an enemy here. You look behind you. Your security guards were there, a constant reminder that you might actually be in danger here. They were from Russia, spoke nearly no English and certainly didn't speak any Armenian. They laughed and joked to each other in Russian while you just stood there. Despite being surrounded by people, you had never felt so alone. Why did you come out here again? You just wanted to see it. Maybe it had been a bad idea. Maybe you should turn back now. Maybe the whole participation had been a mistake? You thought about why you came.  
Carnation. That was the name of your song. The song that millions of people would hear when you perform it at the contest. You hoped it was going to be worth it. Suddenly, you hear a voice calling your name.  
"Tigran! Hey! Tigran!"  
You turn around. It's the Georgian entrant, Anri Jokhadze.  
"Oh, hey Anri," you say as he runs towards you.  
"Hey Tigran," Anri said, "Where have you been? They're looking for you back at the hotel! They're so worried!"  
"Oh..." was all you could say. You had only left the hotel for a couple of minutes, well, maybe a bit longer, but you didn't think you'd been out that long. They were worried about you, you knew why, you probably shouldn't have gone out to look around, but you had wanted to anyway. You knew you would never get the chance again. Still, it was dangerous, even with your guards around you. You followed Anri back to the hotel.  
Jon Ola Sand, executive supervisor of the EBU, was there to greet you. He certainly looked very worried indeed.  
"Oh, Tigran!" Jon smiled as soon as he saw you, "You're alright! Thank goodness. Everyone at the EBU has been so worried."  
It looked like you had caused quite a meltdown back at EBU HQ. You didn't know whether they were actually concerned about you, or just concerned about their image. Of course, if something bad did happen to you, it could tarnish the Eurovision "brand." Still, you couldn't have been gone for more than 20 minutes. You didn't understand why they were so worried so soon. Maybe just going out of the door had concerned them. It looked like they wanted you to stay in the hotel the whole time you were here. But they were probably right. It was probably safer. You sat back down with the other entrants.  
"Sorry guys," you grin sheepishly as you leaned back in the chair, "I didn't mean to worry anyone."  
"That's quite alright Tigran," Jon Ola Sand said, "Just be careful out there."  
"Alright," you reply, "Thank you."  
Jon Ola Sand then turned to make a phone call. He was speaking Norwegian, but you figured he was probably telling everyone at EBU HQ that you were in fact safe and that they didn't need to call off the 2012 contest. At least the final of the contest was soon. Then you could head back home. Whether you did well or not, the fact that you had even agreed to come had given you the respect of many back in Armenia. That was certainly something to be proud of. For the first time, as you look around the room, you feel sure about your participation. You were glad you had come here. The Eurovision Song Contest was one of the most watched events in the world. All those people would be watching you. That wasn't something you could just pass up, even if your countries were enemies.


	2. Chapter 2

Here you were, in a meeting with none other than Jon Ola Sand. Apparently your little excursion had caused quite a few problems in the EBU headquarters.  
"What is it you wanted to see me about, Mr. Sand?" you ask, even though you already know.  
"You understand that you leaving the hotel puts yourself in great danger, correct?" Jon said, then looking over at your Russian guards, "Plus, if you could ask them to stop chugging vodka while we're trying to have a meeting, that would be fantastic."  
"Well, they don't speak English or Armenian," you say, "So I really can't control them. As long as they're around, that's good enough."  
"Great," Jon said, "They're going to be too drunk to do anything."  
That wasn't your fault. The Armenian broadcaster had handpicked them. Apparently in Russia these guys were very well-regarded, and feared. Although, after hanging out with them these past few weeks, you weren't exactly sure why that was the case.  
"Look, I just wanted to-" you begin, but Jon interrupts you.  
"You just wanted to look around, I know," Jon said, "In a country that hates you. Without our permission."  
"Well, I don't actually need your permission to do anything, and-"  
"Stop. Your presence here, which I actually didn't want, is causing all sorts of problems. I didn't want this. The EBU overruled me. They said as long as Armenia wants to send an entrant, they should compete. You understand that this is dangerous, don't you?"  
You nod. You certainly understood that, but nothing bad had happened to you so far. Plus, if Azerbaijan were using this event to show off their country, they couldn't afford anything that makes them look bad. And killing a Eurovision entrant would certainly do that.  
"Look, Tigran," Jon said, his voice becoming more serious, "It has only been four years since the Eurovision Song Contest was attacked. The attack in Belgrade... no one wants a repeat of that."  
That was true. That was the reason for the huge security presence everywhere. You didn't think Ukret were planning on attacking the contest again, but it's better to be safe than sorry. Plus, as an Armenian in Azerbaijan, you had far bigger things to be worrying about, anyway.  
"Tigran, just stay safe, okay?" Jon said, "If anything were to happen to you, it-"  
"Would make you guys look bad, I know," you interrupt him.  
"It would be bad for everyone. You included. We are only trying to help you. Those drunk Russians won't help you when shit really hits the fan."  
Huh. It definitely wasn't usual for Jon to use any swear words, but that just showed how serious it was. The EBU couldn't afford anything bad happening to you. And let's face it, you couldn't either.  
"Alright, I'm sorry, it won't happen again."  
It certainly wouldn't. Just being on those streets had made you feel uneasy. Maybe it was for the best for you to stay in the hotel, even if the EBU only wanted it to prevent any damage to their brand and image. For now, the best thing to do was to focus on your Eurovision performance and staging. After all, what better victory would there be than to get a good result in Baku? You couldn't imagine anything sweeter than that.


End file.
